Apple Is “Blown Away” by iPhone 5 Demand

Apple has sold out the initial batch of iPhone 5 units ready for launch, with the online Apple store showing a 2-3-week shipping estimate on orders placed today. A spokesperson for the Cupertino, California-based technology mammoth said the company is “blown away” by the public’s reception.

Apple on Wednesday unveiled the iPhone 5 to the world for the first time. Critics have been relentless, accusing the Cupertino company of stagnating, forgetting what Apple's chief designer had said: “We didn’t want to just make a new phone. We wanted to make a much better phone! iPhone 5 is the result of this approach.”

And the customers are getting it. One hour into the launch on store.apple.com, customers had already scooped up the allotted first run.

Shipping estimates are now up at 2-3 weeks, and they might even reach four weeks, if the statement from spokeswoman Natalie Kerris is any indication.

Asked by the WSJ-owned All Things D to provide a statement on the huge demand for the latest Apple handset, Kerris said “Pre-orders for iPhone 5 have been incredible. We’ve been completely blown away by the customer response.”

“iPhone 5 is the most beautiful consumer device that we’ve ever created,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing, on Wednesday, after the launch event.

“We’ve packed an amazing amount of innovation and advanced technology into a thin and light, jewel-like device with a stunning 4-inch Retina display, blazing fast A6 chip, ultrafast wireless, even longer battery life; and we think customers are going to love it,” said Schiller.

iPhone 5 comes in either white & silver or black & slate, and will be physically available on September 21 in the United States, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and the UK.